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Spells:
Teleport
Flash
Ability Order
Loaded Dice (PASSIVE)
Twisted Fate Passive Ability
~ ~ Welcome ~ ~

Please keep in mind to never rate a guide before trying it out first, unless you've already tried it.
Please don't rate at all if you don't understand the role of a Utility champion. They're not there to tank the enemy or kill lots of champions. (Though, they can kill champions too, like anybody else)
A Utility carry is there to add a slice of cunning, strengthening more fundamental things like map-dominance and positioning to give your team an edge.
Remember to comment and be open with your thoughts!
Difficulty Note: This build is highly inflexible. It's not meant for people who are just looking to "wing-it" in solo-queue, nor would I recommend this to beginner TF players.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
For Solo-Queuers:
If you choose to use this for solo-queue, please do not blame me for any mishaps.
I also recommend switching to a Ghost


Also, please look forward to my Solo-Queue AP TF guide someday in the future.
For first time users, here's a quick peek at my item build.
For return viewers, please feel free to use this as a reminder of what items to use.
Typical Early Core Items:






Core Sequence:











If the enemy is high in AD:
Switch


Final 6th Item:
![]() Void Staff, for high magic resist teams. Making sure your Q and E still hit effective amounts of damage. |
![]() Will of the Ancients for high physical/true damage teams. Gives good sustainability. |
@New Viewers - Don't use this build/guide without reading it completely through!
It's a good read, can't take more then 15 minutes to skim. Patience wins. :)
- Nov. 18, 2011 - Updated Masteries - Untested. Also updated relevant item build descriptions.
- Nov. 18, 2011 - Swapped Clairvoyance with Flash. CV is not longer viable due to nerfs.
- Oct. 8, 2011 - Fitted Sorcerer's Shoes into the build - Better early game.
- Oct. 8, 2011 - Swapped Abyssal Scepter for Void Staff - Finding the magic resist less necessary.
- Sept. 16, 2011 - Did a routine description sweep. No real changes.
- July 29, 2011 - Updated the guide for the big Gate 5500 nerf.
- July 26, 2011 - Updated the Masteries and Skill Sequence with new mobafire coding
- July 25, 2011 - Redid the Summary Analysis of TF builds from scratch. :)
FYI:
For those interested, head to the bottom chapter for "Old Updates." I only keep the most recent relevant updates here, to prevent a long list of spam.

An interesting passive, it could be better, but has its place. The gold increase should not be underestimated. In high levels of play, things often stay even for a long time. This gold advantage that allows the to purchase more wards and potions more freely is a small part of what makes Twisted Fate a highly valued champion.

The cards will pass through anything in its path. With a huge range and decent AP ratio, this skill is one of the best in harassing strength. This is what many players refer to as a your "bread and butter."

- Blue Card deals 40/60/80/100/120 (+1.0 per attack damage) (+0.4 per ability power) magic damage, restoring mana equal to 65% of the damage dealt.
- Red Card deals 30/45/60/75/90 (+1.0 per attack damage) (+0.4 per ability power) magic damage to all units around the target and slows their movement speeds by 30/35/40/45/50%.
- Gold Card deals 15/22.5/30/37.5/45 (+1.0 per attack damage) (+0.4 per ability power) magic damage and stuns for 1/1.25/1.5/1.75/2 seconds.
One of the signature moves of Twisted Fate. You will spend most of the game focused on picking the correct cards.
The cards follow the order: Blue, Red, Gold, Blue, Red, Gold, and so on without variation. All TF players know this by heart and every shuffle is a test to picking the right card faster. Take note that this ability will convert your basic attack into magic damage, but on-hit effects from items such as



This ability is entirely passive. It is the least significant of your abilities, but the free damage and stats is duly appreciated by any player. It's strength is most noticed during early game. Also, know that it does not work on turrets.

Reveals all enemy champions (including stealthed champions) for 6/8/10 seconds.
While Destiny is active, Twisted Fate can teleport with Gate. (5500 range)
Revealing all enemies to TF, this is one of the most potent utility spells that allows one to decisively understand enemy movement. Gate allows you to teleport, allowing you to reposition yourself based on the new information acquired by Destiny.
As of late July 2011, Gate's range has been reduced to 5500 from being global (25,000). Destiny can still global reveal, but ganks require more forethought.
Pros:
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Pros:
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Pros:
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AD TF puts himself in danger consistently by needing to get into his 510 range to attack. A majority of skills span over 600, meaning he's doomed to get hurt. Hybrid TF has attributes from both builds that make him strong, but inadvertently also has attributes from both sides that make him weak, all while needing obscene amounts of farm to operate well.
Ability Power TF's higher burst damage, removing the need to stay in the fray, to feels more efficient and allows Twisted Fate to contribute more to his team.
Next, I feel it is important to inform you that this guide is modeled off the performance of Reyk who took the then-considered-underpowered Twisted Fate to his fullest potential in the WCG 2010 tournament.
Therefore, this build is most effective in an organized premade game. Allies who know at least the basic idea of what your purpose is essential. I am not responsible for any mishaps with solo-queue.
As of July 2011, only mid lane will give Twisted Fate max potential:
Unless you are experienced enough to deviate from guides, middle lane is highly recommended. With Gate far more restricted, middle lane gives you the most map pressure earl to mid game.
This was an oversight on my part, and I am sincerely sorry for it.
This guide is NOT a backdooring guide.
It is a guide made for solo-pushing. A backdooring TF will often kill himself in the process of breaking a turret, be it the Tower's own strength or an enemy catching him in the act; a backdooring TF also must be AD, as that's the only way they can be sufficient damage to compete with a turret. Solo-pushing TF is far more efficient, in that he has a stronger early game, and does not have to rely on such a kamakazi strategy.
I will define them both in a textbook format to better convey the difference.
Solo-Pusher:
A champion who will go on his/her own to push a lane. Without the aid of teammates, but staying with minions. He/she, under any circumstance, will not run ahead of the minions to attack a tower.
Backdoorer:
A champion who will attack a tower with/without teammates, and without the aid of minions.
This champion will face the full damage output of the enemy turret in the process of doing so, and sometimes give up their own life in order to finish breaking the turret.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
I hope this makes it clear for everyone that this is not "backdooring."
Twisted Fate is one of THE best Solo-Pusher in the game. He has a very strong early game, and excellent minion-wave clearing capacities, but he is not the best Backdoorer. No one should be attempting to backdoor on him with this AP TF.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Early 2011
It seems there is a different name for referring to this guide's strategy now.Split-Pushing.
Essentially, it is the method of being a champion who can push without his/her teammates because of their mobility or survivability. Examples of other champions skilled at this are: Teemo


In this guide, I'll continue to refer to it as solo-pushing, as my guide's strategy does not necessarily require allies to be pushing another lane as well, only doing whatever seems smart at the time without drawing enemies towards Twisted Fate.

Commonly referred to as CV :
It lets you drop a mighty staff upon the map that reveals everything within the area.
The impact it can have on a game is tremendous. Reveal Fog of War, peek in brushes for gankers, behind turrets to confirm MIAs, Baron/Dragon pond for enemies, and even the enemy spawn pool to check out starter items and lane assignments.
When used on Twisted Fate, the results are just hilarious. CV + Destiny = "What is this Fog Of War you speak of?"
I feel this is the ideal choice for Utility Twisted Fate, because in conjunction with Destiny, finding the enemy is a click away.
By simple intuition, map awareness, and a max of 2 wards for Baron + Dragon, 2 Clairvoyance allows any team to isolate and understand the enemy's location throughout the game, crushing all strategic planning from the enemy.
For return readers - Clairvoyance was heavily hit in the second patch, making it no longer viable for use for utility Twisted Fate. Flash is the obvious choice.

A.K.A. TP :
A very good spell with various uses. Return to lane after healing/shopping without losing out on farm, move to a turret in danger of being heavily damaged or destroyed, warp to a ward or allied unit to help out in combat.
It's position in this guide: Mandatory. You may be thinking having TP AND Destiny is a bit redundant. Trust me, it's not; it is borderline OP, and necessary for maximizing TF.
- Early game, this means you'll have a stronger laning phase. You can go back when you'd normally be hesitant of falling behind in exp or gold.
- Late game, teleport is your ticket to the lane the enemies are far from, so you can farm while your allies hold off a group push. Destiny is your ticket to safety when they realize you're messing with their tower and try to gank you.

Flash is the most useful spell in the game due to it's unhindered champion displacement ability. Escape from what would normally be certain death, and capture enemies who thought they escapes the clutches of defeat.
By very conservative about using this spell as it has a lengthy cooldown, and if you waste it needlessly, you will end up regretting it.
Early game, it is often regarded as a "gain" if an enemy can force you to use it, as it means for the next 4 minutes, you are down one means of escape or chase.
AP Caster build

Any Magic user's early-game crutch for staying alive longer. The extra health should not be underestimated, the different between having 4 health bars and 5 health bars decides whether the enemy wants to try to kill you immediately.
Note: These masteries are not tested. They were picked with theoretical reasoning and without proper testing. When I have the time, I will be sure to give this section the attention it needs.
But, don't let that discourage you from using these masteries. Use your own discretion about what seems good.
Some points to make note of:




Blue card is effectively free damage that makes last-hitting very easy.


Try to restrain yourself until it is level3, this ability can consume a lot of mana in a sort time if you aren't careful.









Start: Boots of Speed + health poiton x 4
July 2011 - I've adopted the more popular Twisted Fate start that calls for mobility early game. The boots of speed let you maneuver better and the potions help you stay in lane.
Note: Make sure you have the

Doran's Ring Stack: Purchase 2 Doran's Rings.
These will buffer your health bar, and give you the ability power and mana-regen for staying in lane.

Potions and Wards are your friends! Purchase 1~2 potions and necessary wards whenever you find the opportunity or need to recall and lack the gold for your next item.
-If you can do it without attracting the enemy jungler, pushing your lane really fast creates the perfect opportunity to recall and shop without risking damage to your turret.
Blasting Wand: Your first goal should be improving your

Sorcerer's Shoes: The 20 magic penetration, after you've acquired some significant ability power, is very strong. Your harass will be taking out memorable amounts of your opponents' health. However, in the late-game, you'll want to optimize for casting or survivability.





Rabadon's Deathcap: For 3600 gold, Banksy gives us 182 AP!!
This will make your wild cards hit extremely hard. Do not underestimate the power of rushing a Deathcap, but don't get overconfident either. Your harass is now deadly, but you are still a squishy. Pick your fights, don't let them pick you.
Banksy:
As of Jan 4, 2010, Zhonya's Ring

In case none of you noticed, or watched the patch preview, Zhonya's ring was deemed too powerful with its heavy AP and a solid tank-type active. Instead, it's powers were split into two, and now there's is a gloriously potent item known as Banksy's Deathcap. Cheaper then "the Ring," yet it gives more of the AP which is all this TF build really needed.
Originally called Banksy in the preview video, it came out as Rabadon. Personally, I like Banksy better.
Lich Bane: The Linchpin of AP TF. This item is beautiful; grants ability power, movement speed, magic resist, and an improved auto-attack every 2 seconds. Blue Card is free now, and Gold Card will feel hit like a Wild Card.
Tower-Pushing with Lich Bane: With Deathcap fueling your AP, this LB's passive effect will take substantial chunks out of the turret's hp. And, PaC procs the effect!
Blue Card -> 2 seconds -> waste Wilds cards simply for proc -> 2 seconds -> Blue card again. Tower has lost 30~50% HP.
Note: Although the damage may not be as fast as late-game AD Twisted Fate, it will be as fast mid-game, and the AP means Twisted Fate's early game will be vastly stronger.
A better foundation for victory, and more fun! Why wouldn't you build AP? ^_^
Banshee's Veil:
A defensive item is crucial to ensuring you don't end up feeding the enemy. You're squishy and should equip yourself with that in mind.
Normally, I choose Banshee's Veil. Magic damage just tickles after I get it, and the Spell-block ensures no last-second stun blocks my Destiny escapes. I'd like to re-emphasize this in that, the bubble lets me Gate freely. If I doddle for too long in a bad spot, Banshee's Veil will protect me against various abilities such as




Rarely however, you will face a team of AD DPS juggernauts...

Guardian's Angel offers both a 2nd chance, and a noticeable psychological impact. People will attack you less, knowing that they won't really get the kill.
However, this only applies to team fights, so you'll have to rely on your own wits to keep you out of trouble during solo lane-pushing.
Zhonya's Hourglass: Replacing Rylai from my original set-up, this shiny new generation item can function as an excellent defense for escapes and team fights.
The AP is also very strong, and will make Lich Bane hurt far more.
Ionian Boots of Lucidity: Getting into the late game, your magic damage will naturally dip.
Replace your

Enemies building magic resist and yourself hitting the plateau for ability power. It just seems natural that casting more will be more effective then trying to hit more.
After all, with more casting, you get more Gold Card stuns; these boots will bring you up to 39% cooldown reduction.
~ ~ ~
Now, this will be your final item. I've hardly ever had a chance to buy these; maybe 2~3 times at best. With the current iteration of Twisted Fate, I've found that there's two routes you want to take.
One is damage, the other is support.
![]() With your recent purchase of ![]() Go with this if the enemies are all packing ![]() ![]() |
![]() Will of the Ancients is the choice for a team that's higher in Physical/True damage then Magical. Spell-Vamp works off abilities indiscriminately, thus offering your team good sustainability. Ideal for long team fights. |
Both of these are good picks, deciding between the two just depends on whether your damage, or the team's sustain is more important.
Early Farming Basics: This is something everyone should learn ASAP.
- Never mindlessly attack the minions. This will cause your minions to push closer to the enemy turret; in a bot game this is good, in a normal game it will lead to you getting ganked.
- Let your minions attack, and watch for the enemy unit being damaged most. Attack accordingly to score gold. This will keep your wave from pushing too far ahead.
- Always be walking around. Try to avoid the enemy, and stay behind/beside your minions. Idling will give your enemy time to aim for harass damage.
This will also allow you to stay near the enemy minions without auto-attacking them. - Tank minions and Melee minions give more gold. (Just thought I'd throw that in there)
Focusing on farming early game is crucial to getting your core items and setting yourself up for success.
I presume you're an experienced Twisted Fate. So, to keep my guide shorter, I'm only going to skim through the early and mid game.
Level 1~6:
- Blue card for last-hits, Red card when you're high on mana and it is safe.
- If the enemy is aggressive, save PaC for Gold-Card stunning.
- Wild Cards - Do not use this until it's rank 2; the damage low and risk/reward of missing a toss is just not worthwhile.
- Try to play conservatively until you have a Sheen.
- If you anticipate a chance to harass with Pick A Card, make sure to build up Stacked Deck as well.
Level 6~11: Ganking Time! (Updated for the Gate nerf of July 2011)
- Recall and refill your resources when you have comfortable pushed the lane.
- Head back to lane and farm casually, conserving your mana
- Eye your mini map carefully and take note of how much the other two lanes are pushing.
- If you stop an enemy ready to be ganked; get your allies to initiate, run down river until half way to Baron/Dragon, load a Gold Card, activate Destiny and proceed to Gate in.
Generics:
- Red Card + Wild Cards is your bread and butter combo that will wipe out a majority of minion waves. Try to throw wild Cards when they're in a line, or from the side if they're bunched together for maximum coverage.
- Teamwork: Coordinate yourself to always be 2nd/3rd into a battle. You need a moment to use Gold-Card. Don't make that moment your last.
Late Game
Here's where player skill separates the AD from AP for Twisted FateLevel 12~18:
That is really all you're good for.
This is why AD TF is not truly viable. All his strengths shut down in team fights. If an AD Twisted Fate gets any sort of Killing Spree going, a competent team will quickly focus him the next time he shows his face.
An AP TF doesn't carry the same issue. With high AP, Wild Cards is a long-range poke that will make enemies fall back like any other skill shot, and Gold Card will do damage on top of a stun, making that 1 second combo much more vicious.
It may not be much, but it's the factor that makes AP TF trump AD TF.
Late Game:


It's where things get fun. ^_^
Usually, the enemy will group up and start pushing mid like angry gorillas.
Casually, walk to a side lane (or opposite lane if they're going after top/bottom) and proceed to farm minion waves and push down their tower; this is a "solo-push."
Keep your eye on the mini-map at all times to track the general movement of your enemies.
Your team will likely avoid initiating because it's 4 v 5. So, it's all good~
Sooner or later the enemies will fall back.
You're pushing into enemy territory and you don't know where they are.
Escape:
Count to 5 and use Destiny. Take a moment to check where the enemies are, then Gate out to one of the following:
- Nearby allies to join fight or receive protection.
- Allied jungle/river side to escape surrounding enemies.
Gate with 5500 range is still viable for executing the power of TP+Gate Solo-Pushing, but it you've lost an option of jumping to an opposite lane. You now must be more alert to your enemy's movements and be more awareness of ideal Gate points.
Teleport - Use it to:
- Damage Turrets: There's a minion wave nearing a tower; Teleport there before the enemies notice, and crack that tower good.
- Double Push: The enemies fell back, and you realize you don't need Destiny or MapHacks to tell you where they went. Teleport to the opposite (top/bottom) lane and start the cat-and-mouse game all over again.
- Support your team: Your allies should be tower-hugging. If the enemies initiate and you're not close to breaking a turret, use Teleport to show your allies Gold Card stun is there when they need it.
Justification:
Destiny only keeps you one step ahead. This extra step is easily overturned by enemies with Teleport, and smart players in general.
Teleport puts you up to 2 steps ahead, which only another Twisted Fate could possibly keep up with. (Shen only works with his allies, and Pantheon's slow~)
What have you accomplished?
If applied properly, this strategy will:
- Get you lots of easy gold
- Push lanes and damage towers. (Enemies: "Don't touch our towers!" You: *TOUCH*)
- Deny them the pleasure of ganking/stopping you.
(Enemies: "We're gonna get you..." You: *Destiny* Oh, they're coming. *Gate Out*
Enemies: " **** Destiny!!" ) - Force the enemy to choose: Lose a tower, or abandon the push effort.
- Lead the enemy into a predictable pattern for the team. Every time you use Destiny, your team also sees the enemy, and can respond more efficiently.
Repeat these solo-push tactics until all 6 outer turrets are destroyed, and you just have to help your team break one more.
Tip: Resist the urge to finish off a tower. If the enemies are coming, be patient and leave the tower for another time. You've done plenty to the tower, their minions, their desire to push your lanes, and their egos just by pushing neglected lanes and leaving before they could respond properly.
Conclusive Goal: While farming and solo-pushing, you want to provoke the enemy into an absurd cat-and-mouse game, where the mouse can jump through space. XD
This will make it impossible for the enemy champions to focus on whole group pushes, which is all the current meta-game goes for.
Now all this presumes you and most of your allies are playing well.
This is because a Utility champion, like Defensive Tanks, relies on the Offensive carries to keep the enemy dead or backed off.
If your main Offensive ally can't do that, your own success will be hindered too.
As Utility Twisted Fate, you are extremely team-dependent.
That aside, if you do have a good team:
You will carry your team.
Not by killing enemies, but by wiping out minions, breaking towers, and pinching your enemy mentally.
There is virtually no way of countering this strategy. So long as you stick to the plan, and do not get overconfident, you'll always see the enemy coming.
You become the pinnacle of Utility power via map awareness, minion+tower demolition, extreme map movement, and the occasional colourful Gold Card stun. ^__^
Twisted Fate's original tags are "Support, Stun, Pusher, Carry, Slow, Ranged, Flee, Teleport." Riot never tagged him as a fighter, so AD doesn't seem to make much sense. =P
Update: Twisted Fate is now tagged as "Assassin, Pusher, Ranged."
So he's no longer a carry, a direct slap to AD TF's!
And, no longer tagged as a support, haha, silly Riot is bad with definitions. Makes me sad that they don't term champions with "utility" though.
I hope this guide was helpful. If you see anything wrong with it, leave a comment and I will try my best to justify myself or fix it.
- July 29, 2011 - NERF - Gate now has a range of 5500
The big nerf's finally come. But it's not so bad. This guide will survive. :) - Jun, 22, 2011 - A few updates this patch.
- Blue card's mana-restore is no longer reduced/canceled if damage is shielded. A shift that helps TF, as shields are becoming more popular in LoL's designs.
- Loaded Dice now deactivates while TF is dead. Meh. :/
- Fix - The Zhonya Gate bug was fixed. Knew it.
- May 10, 2011 - Fix - PAC's automatic attack issue is fixed. :)
- - Apr. 26, 2011 - Fix - Mana Return on Blue Card raised to 65%.
This sort of change doesn't seem like it will help TF much. Will have to test post-patch to see.
- - Apr. 11, 2011 - v1_0_0_115 Many bugs fixed, as well as some interesting changes.
I'll list the notable things here:- Fix - Red Card bug fixed so damage isn't cancelled when thrown on runaway targets.
Awesome, plenty of TFs were sad about that. - Pick a Card now deals entirely magic damage.
- Slight buff - More consistent benefit from Magic Penetration for our combos.
- Nerf - Turns out Pick A Card can no longer affect the Nexus or inhibitors. This really hurts for pushing strategies.
- Pick A Card can no longer hit inhibitors or the nexus.
- Nerf - Attack animations with PAC loaded can no longer be cancelled if you stop to attack someone. You will toss, and there's nothing you can do about it. :[
- Blue Card now restores mana equal to 50% of the damage dealt.
- I think this was done to balance the AD -> AP change of Pick A Card.
- Nerf - Evidence found that this ratio'ing will cause AP TFs to get less mana-return for building AP. :(
- It's a buff to AD TFs, Blue Card can now scale mana-return with bonus AD.
- Also, I personally tested: Lich Bane procs are not converted into magic damage.
- As AP TF, this patch harmed far more then helped; lower sustainability, weakened inhibitor breaking, but our magic damage has been emphasized.
- Fix - Red Card bug fixed so damage isn't cancelled when thrown on runaway targets.
- Dec. 26, 2010 - Patch v1_0_0_107 - The nerf to Wards will indirectly buff Twisted Fate's Destiny as well as Clairvoyance, reveal is very useful. :)
- - Oct. 19, 2010 - Buff - Blue Card's bonus damage increased. It's now 100% free, and provides an effective source of mana for AP-builds late-game!
- July 24, 2011 - Updated Summoner Spells text. So much done today!!
- July 24, 2011 - Removed Ghost as an alternate choice to CV.
- July 24, 2011 - Completely re-did the Skill Sequence chapter, with the addition of a screenshot of the sequence! ^_^
- July 24, 2011 - Returned to maxing Stacked Deck last.
- July 24, 2011 - Created an "Abilities" chapter, distinctly separating "Skills" and "Skill Sequence."
- July 24, 2011 - Added "columns" where needed. I've been waiting to make use of that code.
- July 24, 2011 - Updated my "Cheatsheet" to reflect the changes.
- July 24, 2011 - Adjusted all item chapters accordingly.
- July 24, 2011 - Removed Randuin's Omen as an item to build against AD. (What was I thinking?!)
- July 24, 2011 - Moved "Rabadon's Deathcap" before "Lich Bane"
- July 24, 2011 - Added two "Doran's Ring" to the item build.
- July 24, 2011 - Changed "Boots of Speed" to the recommended starter item.
- July 23, 2011 - Moved TF Changes to the bottom of the chapters. I was getting sick of seeing that big list.
- July 22, 2011 - Removed Situational items. I NEVER buy Mejai anymore, it's just not smart.
- July 8, 2011 - Updated description for the Rabadon's Deathcap nerf.
Due to the length of the list, I have taken all changes pre-July 2011 and stored them in a file.
They are available on request is anyone seriously wants to see them.
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